I truly believe one of the biggest hurdles we face in life is lack of confidence. I question myself ALL OF THE TIME! Work, home, relationships, parenting, yadda, yadda, yadda. Questioning results in hesitation. Hesitation means no action. No action is a chosen action. So my charge to you is this; no matter what goal you want to accomplish, don't be afraid. Sometimes the fist step is hardest to take.
I recently watched a speech by Kristen Pressner, a top executive with Roche Diagnostics, and I felt like she was talking straight at me. Everything made perfect sense. At that same moment, I also felt a little relief because I wasn't alone, and if a senior executive with Fortune 500 company felt this way at one point and overcame it, then so can I!!!!!
I found the following 20 minute speech highly inspirational.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3x9Pkma0R6k
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
Friday, June 26, 2015
Two new ways to be rewarded for saving!!!!
Caveat emptor (beware) I haven't actually signed up and used either of these services yet, but they both seem pretty cool! I am going to dig deeper into their security before I jump in.
www.saveup.com - Link your banking/debt/savings accounts and earn points to redeem for cash, goodies, etc. It appears there is also a lottery type system where you can randomly win prizes too!
www.digit.co/ - After you link your bank account, digit monitors your spending and earnings habits and automatically determines a saving opportunity. Then it moves money in small increments to a separate savings account that builds over time. The video says that money can be moved back to you in 1 business day with via a text message.
Happy saving!!!!
Caveat emptor (beware) I haven't actually signed up and used either of these services yet, but they both seem pretty cool! I am going to dig deeper into their security before I jump in.
www.saveup.com - Link your banking/debt/savings accounts and earn points to redeem for cash, goodies, etc. It appears there is also a lottery type system where you can randomly win prizes too!
www.digit.co/ - After you link your bank account, digit monitors your spending and earnings habits and automatically determines a saving opportunity. Then it moves money in small increments to a separate savings account that builds over time. The video says that money can be moved back to you in 1 business day with via a text message.
Happy saving!!!!
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Easy Ways to Start Saving
Welcome! I am so excited you are here and look forward to helping my fellow ladies achieve everything you want in life.
I recently read and article on CNBC that over 29% of Americans have 0% in Emergency Savings. All the readership glory is usually given to saving for retirement etc., but when it comes down to it, for most people the first and most important step is to start an emergency fund. Why is that? Because it prevents overuse and build up of credit card balances and it will prevent potentially detrimental effects from unexpected unemployment, car break down, medical costs, etc.
So your next question is probably, "how much should I be saving?" To keep it simple, if you are married and have a dual income household, a basic rule of thumb is 3 months of expenses, which is not to be confused with income.....just expenses. However, if you have 1 wage earner, a safer savings threshold is 6 months of expenses. That sounds like a lot, right?!?! Well, it is! Realistically, I am not suggesting that all of your savings is solely dedicated to emergency funds for the next decade of your life, but if you don't have any, it's time to start.
The first rule is to always pay your self first. Decide what you can stomach and set it aside each week/month/paycheck and have it automatically go into savings before you see it hit your account.
Beyond the basic banking and budgeting (which is a whole different animal that I can talk about at a later time), the following a easier and less painful...and hopefully more fun!
Online Shopping
Online & Printable Coupons - Websites like Shopathome.com and Retailmenot.com offer cash back and coupon codes if you make your purchases through their site. It's simple, you create an account and search for your vendor and it will list available discounts. For example, I recently booked our trip to Mexico through Travelocity using Shopathome.com, which was offering 5% cash back and $100 off instantly. The website is going to mail me a check for $130, which I will put in savings!!!!
Groupon/Living Social/Amazon Local - I love these websites. You have to be careful and make sure you aren't buying something just because its a good deal, but I peruse these sites and if I see a vendor or restaurant we frequent, the savings is a no-brainer.
Credit Cards
Cash back/Reward cards - This one is tricky and requires self discipline. I put EVERYTHING that I possibly can on my Bank of America Cash Rewards card and PAY IT OFF AT THE END OF THE MONTH (3%cash back on gas, 2% on groceries, 1% on everything else, and they give me a rewards bonus if I cash out my rewards and deposit it into my savings account). I build up all of the rewards points I can and its a little hidden savings account for a rainy day. (My savings over 1 year was about $300 in cash)
Finding the right card for you is important. Apps like, WalletUp can help. You enter the details about your wallet and the app tells you the best credit card to use.
Nerdewallet.com is also another great resource when vetting a credit card.
Keep the change
Whether you use a credit card that has a keep the change function or you use cash, a little change here and there really does add up!!!!
If you still balance your check book; another sneaky way to save is to round up EVERY transaction. If you combine this with a keep the change function with your bank, you will double your savings. For example, you get gas and it costs $38.50. In your check book register you write $39 In addition your bank records a $38.50 transaction and another $0.50 transaction that is sent to your savings account. (My total keep the change savings has been about $1200 since starting the program a couple of years ago).
......I just realized this is getting long and I could talk for hours about this stuff so I will leave you with one final automatic savings that most people are GIVING AWAY......
401k Match
A lot of companies offer a match on your 401k contributions. Make sure that you are contributing up to that limit, otherwise you are giving away free money! For example, let's say your company offers a 3% match, but you must contribute at least 6% to receive all of that match. If you are only contributing 3%, guess what, you are leaving 1.5% on the table every single contribution. Over time, that can add up to thousands of dollars missing from your retirement savings. (For a salary of $50k, you're giving away about $750 per year!)
I recently read and article on CNBC that over 29% of Americans have 0% in Emergency Savings. All the readership glory is usually given to saving for retirement etc., but when it comes down to it, for most people the first and most important step is to start an emergency fund. Why is that? Because it prevents overuse and build up of credit card balances and it will prevent potentially detrimental effects from unexpected unemployment, car break down, medical costs, etc.
So your next question is probably, "how much should I be saving?" To keep it simple, if you are married and have a dual income household, a basic rule of thumb is 3 months of expenses, which is not to be confused with income.....just expenses. However, if you have 1 wage earner, a safer savings threshold is 6 months of expenses. That sounds like a lot, right?!?! Well, it is! Realistically, I am not suggesting that all of your savings is solely dedicated to emergency funds for the next decade of your life, but if you don't have any, it's time to start.
The first rule is to always pay your self first. Decide what you can stomach and set it aside each week/month/paycheck and have it automatically go into savings before you see it hit your account.
Beyond the basic banking and budgeting (which is a whole different animal that I can talk about at a later time), the following a easier and less painful...and hopefully more fun!
Online Shopping
Online & Printable Coupons - Websites like Shopathome.com and Retailmenot.com offer cash back and coupon codes if you make your purchases through their site. It's simple, you create an account and search for your vendor and it will list available discounts. For example, I recently booked our trip to Mexico through Travelocity using Shopathome.com, which was offering 5% cash back and $100 off instantly. The website is going to mail me a check for $130, which I will put in savings!!!!
Groupon/Living Social/Amazon Local - I love these websites. You have to be careful and make sure you aren't buying something just because its a good deal, but I peruse these sites and if I see a vendor or restaurant we frequent, the savings is a no-brainer.
Credit Cards
Cash back/Reward cards - This one is tricky and requires self discipline. I put EVERYTHING that I possibly can on my Bank of America Cash Rewards card and PAY IT OFF AT THE END OF THE MONTH (3%cash back on gas, 2% on groceries, 1% on everything else, and they give me a rewards bonus if I cash out my rewards and deposit it into my savings account). I build up all of the rewards points I can and its a little hidden savings account for a rainy day. (My savings over 1 year was about $300 in cash)
Finding the right card for you is important. Apps like, WalletUp can help. You enter the details about your wallet and the app tells you the best credit card to use.
Nerdewallet.com is also another great resource when vetting a credit card.
Keep the change
Whether you use a credit card that has a keep the change function or you use cash, a little change here and there really does add up!!!!
If you still balance your check book; another sneaky way to save is to round up EVERY transaction. If you combine this with a keep the change function with your bank, you will double your savings. For example, you get gas and it costs $38.50. In your check book register you write $39 In addition your bank records a $38.50 transaction and another $0.50 transaction that is sent to your savings account. (My total keep the change savings has been about $1200 since starting the program a couple of years ago).
......I just realized this is getting long and I could talk for hours about this stuff so I will leave you with one final automatic savings that most people are GIVING AWAY......
401k Match
A lot of companies offer a match on your 401k contributions. Make sure that you are contributing up to that limit, otherwise you are giving away free money! For example, let's say your company offers a 3% match, but you must contribute at least 6% to receive all of that match. If you are only contributing 3%, guess what, you are leaving 1.5% on the table every single contribution. Over time, that can add up to thousands of dollars missing from your retirement savings. (For a salary of $50k, you're giving away about $750 per year!)
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